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projects

See what’s currently going on in our workshop, and some of the jobs we’ve finished…

Lambretta Street Racer

We are currently in the process of building a series 3 Lambretta in to a street racer the object is to try and get as close to 100mph as we can.

The scooter was stripped and sand blasted before the frame had some strengthening and modification carried out to it. To keep the weight down we chose to use carbon fibre panels which after test fitting were shipped to our painters along with the frame.

The front forks were checked for any bends or damage and then they were rebuilt with all new components including a massive 210mm Casa disc and fully adjustable dampers. The rest of the scooter has been built using light weight components, alloy and titanium bolts where possible.

The engine is currently in its build stage it will be having 5 speed gearbox and a race inspired fully ported Casa engine.

Pingu Mini Restoration

We were contacted by Victoria who’s mini “Pingu” needed restoring after it had seen quite a few bad repairs over the years.

The first job was to media blast the shell so we could see all the issues. The shell had seen some ingenious bodges in its life and required a few panels.
The list of panels ended up being quite long with new inner wings, outer wings, windscreen scuttle panel, front panel, A panels, floor pans, outer sills, rear quarter panel repairs, Rear hinge panel, rear valence, boot floor/seat squab panel, door, various little repairs plus making and fitting a carburettor baulk head box.

The shell was then shipped to our painter where it was given a fresh paint job in Arctic white with a black roof.
Once the suspension was overhauled and refitted Pingu was delivered back to its happy owner.

1965 MK1 Mini

We recently had a customer visit us with a 1965 MK1 Mini for appraisal of its bodywork. After a check over it soon became apparent that it required a full restoration.

After the customer stripped the car to a bare shell the major reconstruction work could then be carried out. The bodyshell benifitted from having new front panel, front wings, windscreen scuttle panel, front inner wings, inner and outer A panels, front lower baulkhead, complete floor with tunnel, outer sills, rear pockets, rear subframe mounting panel, rear seat squab, boot floor, rear valance, rear light panel, 1 door and various repairs the shell was then shipped to our painters where it is currently recieving a top class paint job.

1979 Vespa Primavera

This 1979 Vespa Primavera was bought in to the workshop for a few small jobs to be carried out followed by an mot. The scooter had been painted to look rusty but the decision was soon made to give the smallframe a total make over.

The Vespa was stripped to a bare frame, sandblasted and given a fresh coat of red before it was re-assembled with new wiring loom, cables, fuel lines and suspension components. The work carried out has transformed the little scooter and it is now ready for the summer shows.

1960s series 3 Lambretta

This scooter is a part restored project that has been taken over by another owner.

We dry assembled the scooter to see what parts were missing, broken and unserviceable before taking it apart again so some of the panels could be painted and the suspension , steering, brakes and engine can be rebuilt.

late Mini Cooper

A late Mini Cooper was delivered to the workshop. This car had become a stalled project and the owner struggling to find a way forward.

The first thing was to strip the car and then modify some of the panel work. The rear arches were tubbed to allow for a low ride height, the rear seat squab and pockets were also removed as the car will be a 2 seater, MK1 rear light panels were fitted and then the boot floor and rear valance were modified to allow for a custom exhaust system.

With the car at the paint shop attention has been turned to the various components that will be fitted to the car these include Lotus Elise seats, turbo charged A series engine, adjustable suspension, compomotive wheels, roll cage, custom petrol cap, KAD brakes and loads of carbon fibre parts

1959 Vespa VBA

The scooter was stripped back to a bare frame. With the frame and panels sand blasted a small amount of welding and repair work was carried out before being painted in 2 tone orange with a gold pearl.

The vintage Vespa was then reassembled using new bearings, cables, wiring, brake parts and a later 125cc engine with 4 speed gearbox. The transformation was then completed with 10″ alloy rims.

1964 Mini Cooper 970S

This 1964 970cc Cooper S was bought in to the workshop for a total restoration. The first job was to strip the car to a bare shell. The shell was then sandblasted so we could see what repairs were needed.

All of the standard hydrolastic suspension was then fully overhauled and refitted to the shell along with rebuilt Cooper S engine, new interior, wiring loom, original Speedwell wheels and rev counter.

After a full suspension set up and road test the car was delivered to the customer who could not believe the transformation.

1980 Lotus Elite

1980 Lotus Elite – McNair Motorsport were contacted by a Lotus enthusiast from South London and were contracted to re-commission a 1980 2.2ltr Lotus Elite that had not been used for over 7 years.

With the car collected and a brief discussion with the owner about the history of the car the first thing that became apparent was the lack of clutch operation.

We removed the engine, which on this car is a fairly big job, and found the clutch drive plate to be welded to the flywheel. With the flywheel cleaned up and a new clutch assembly fitted the engine was reinstalled into the car.
With new fluids in the engine and some checks made the engine fired in to life and after a tune of the side draught carburettors and timing the car turned its wheels since being laid up.

Before the Lotus made its way to its MOT the brakes, suspension and electrics were checked over and a few small faults sorted out before the fitment of new rear wheel cylinders and brake shoes which necessitated the removal of the rear differential and carrier.

The Lotus flew through its mot and the cars owner collected the car and drove for the first time in 7 years back to London.

MK2 Mini Cooper S Snowberry white

McNair Motorsport had a MK2 Cooper S dropped off at our workshop for a full restoration. After the car was stripped back to a bare bodyshell it was evaluated and the necessary body panels were ordered.

With new front wings, front panel, rear valence, front and rear floors, inner sills, outer sills and various repair sections fitted the car was then taken to the Body Shop to have its paintwork applied.

With the bodyshell back at the workshop in its new Snowberry White and black colour the build up of the running gear commenced. The freshly powder coated subframes were assembled with fully adjustable suspension and uprated bushes. The subframe assembly’s were then carefully fitted to the bodyshell using new bolts and brake pipes.

With the shell now a rolling assembly a very excited customer took delivery of it so he could fit his new interior and engine.

1969 TVR Vixen

This lovely little TVR Vixen was bought to McNair Motorsport by a long term TVR owner and racer Pete Reeve.

After racing high powered more modern TVRs Pete decided that he wanted a change so purchased the Vixen and commissioned us to convert it from a road car to a post historic racing car.

The body shell was removed from the chassis so that it could be checked over, strengthened and powder coated before being fitted with new or reconditioned and uprated suspension components.

The car will be running a fully built 1600cc Ford X-Flow endurance race spec engine, bullet gearbox and plate type LSD. This drive train spec allied to the cars low weight should make it a very competitive package.